Directional drilling combined with high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) are disruptive technologies allowing unprecedented volumes of oil and natural gas to be produced from shale formations to meet society’s energy demands. The Marcellus, Utica, and Upper Devonian shale formations in the Appalachian basin are being developed primarily for shale gas production with the Marcellus shale currently producing approximately 36 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas, or about 40% of the United States’ natural gas. Concerns and highly publicized allegations of groundwater contamination have persisted for multiple years in many shale basins across the US. Known mechanisms for groundwater impacts include methane migration from inadequate well construction and releases of drilling, fracturing and/or production fluids at or near the land surface.
A major challenge to environmental investigations associated with shale energy development is that the many compounds used during drilling and fracturing operations are not currently regulated and therefore accepted analytical methodologies for these compounds do not exist. To meet this challenge, we propose to utilize two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GCxGC-TOFMS) for analysis of groundwater samples where issues are suspected or known. A major advantage of using this method over conventional analytical techniques is that a wide array of compounds can be detected in samples from investigations of alleged releases of fluids whose chemical makeup may be unknown or not fully disclosed. Use of GCxGC-TOFMS will lead to more comprehensive environmental characterization of alleged releases and determine if they are related to a certain phase of shale development or are unrelated. Ultimately this methodology can be used to characterize and minimize environmental risks and exposures associated with oil and gas development as well as with many other industries and activities.
Resulting Publications
- Llewellyn, Garth T.; Dorman, Frank; Westland, J. L.; Yoxtheimer, D.; Grieve, Paul; Sowers, Todd; Humston-Fulmer, E.; Brantley, Susan L. Evaluating a groundwater supply contamination incident attributed to Marcellus Shale gas development. 2015, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences; 6325-6330, 112, 20. https://www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10.1073/pnas.1420279112
